Title: Dance with Me
Rating: M
Summary: A major league baseball player with a bad rep needs to clean his image. He signs on to do a reality dance show. Will he clean his image and have the right kind of chemistry with his partner?
Disclaimer: Twilight belongs to Stephanie Meyer I own nothing.
Comments: Based loosely on the reality t.v. show Dancing with the Stars and because Bella/Edward are my new favorite ship.

Here we have some conversations. And more dancing. Duh. :)

Happy Holidays everyone!

Thank you, RuthPerk for beta'ing!

Edward POV

March 9th 2008

Bella and I were making progress. Each day with her was getting better and better. She was an excellent teacher, and a wonderful person to be around. She knew when to push me, and when to take a step back and let me be. As an athlete, I'm used to coaches pushing me to my fullest potential, but this was a television show and we didn't take it very seriously. Don't get me wrong; we wanted to respect the dances and dancers in general, but we also wanted to have fun.

Right now, Bella was in the middle of teaching me the Salsa. Our Foxtrot was pretty much done. All we did was dance the routine she choreographed and it was mostly for repetition on my part. Salsa dancing proved to be very fun for me. I liked that I could be looser and move around. It was different than the stiff Foxtrot.

When Bella told me that I had to learn two routines by the first show, I nearly passed out. She informed me that one of the contestants would be eliminated right after the first show, if we went on, we would have to learn a new dance routine in four days. She was thinking it would be better if I learned two dances, instead of scrambling to learn one in four days.

Bella and I were taking a water break and I was watching her as she sipped from her water bottle. I had to admit that being here with Bella for six hours almost every day was a challenge. Bella is a beautiful woman, and she's a dancer, that in itself is sexy as hell. But it was her personality that really drew me in. She was smart and witty and clumsy and delightful. The only thing that saddened me was that, even though we'd spent so much time together, I still didn't know Bella.

"What's your favorite ice cream?" I asked her.

"What?" she asked, laughing.

"I realized that I don't know much about you. So, what is your favorite ice cream?"

Bella smiled up at me. "Strawberry, Coffee, and Mint Chocolate Chip."

"Favorite food?" I asked.

"Too many to name," she answered.

"Top three?" I pressed.

"French fries with ranch, any pasta dish, and tiramisu."

"That last dish is not food," I teased.

She stuck out her tongue at me.

"Silly, Bella," I said, laughing.

"Tricks are for kids!" she chimed. We both erupted in laughter.

"Let's take it from the top?" she asked.

"Sure, teach."

For the rest of the afternoon, Bella was trying to work with me on my footwork. Although the Salsa was fun, it required lots of footwork. She was showing me a series of steps and we were facing the mirror. When Bella danced, it looked perfect. When I danced, it looked bad. She contained her laughter, but after she saw my frustration, she decided to work on a different aspect of the dance.

"Chemistry is important. When you dance with me, you have to look at me like you want me," she instructed.

Look at her like I want her? Well alright!

I nodded my head in understanding.

"Come here," she beckoned me with her fingers. I went over to stand in front of her and she brought her arm around my neck while the other grasped my hand. "Look into my eyes!" she barked.

I bent my head down to mirror Bella's position and sought her eyes. She was looking straight at me. Her gaze was fiery, but not sexual. I looked right back at her and tried to give her a smoldering look.

"Look at me like you want me, Edward."

I kept looking.

"There," her gaze never faltered. "That's the look!" She broke from our hold and gave me a high-five. "Good job! That, my friend, is chemistry!"

What the hell? How could she be so cool and calm after that? Oh, yeah. She's a dancer; she's used to doing this.

I sighed. Today was going to be a long day.

Bella POV

Salsa dancing with Edward was so much fun. He could really move! And that, again, surprised me. When we were dancing ballroom, he could be quite musical and when we danced Latin, he could get down. I was absolutely giddy just thinking of how far we could go this season.

Edward and I were trying to perfect this trick in our Salsa routine. It was a dip/lift. I would be bending backwards and Edward would have to dip me while lifting me up just enough for my toes to touch the floor. I had my back arched and my head had fallen backwards. Edward had his right arm on the middle of my back and his left arm was cradling my head.

"Now, look into the mirror," I said.

He looked straight at the mirror.

"Hold it! Count to three mentally, and then lift me back to a standing position."

I could see that he was counting; and then, he slowly pulled me back so that I was standing upright.

"Good job. That's our ending pose for the routine."

"Okay," he said.

"So I think we've done enough for today. Meet you here tomorrow?" I asked Edward.

He was sitting on the floor next to his gym bag, taking off his dance shoes. "Yes."

I sat next to him and reached to get my own dance bag. I unfastened the buckle off my heels and placed them back inside the bag. I took out a pair of flats and slipped them on.

I looked over at Edward and found him drinking his Gatorade. I watched as his throat muscles swallowed and I could see that his eyes were closed. I smiled inwardly; Edward was tired!

"So, Edward, are you going tomorrow?" I asked all of a sudden.

His head snapped up and he pulled his Gatorade away from his lips. "Am I going where?"

"To the cast party?" I inquired. At the start of every season, the network's producers have a dinner/dance party. It's a way for all of the cast, dancers, and crew to meet and get to know each other. Normally I don't go out to clubs and dinner and socializing, but it was part of work ,so it was very hard to avoid it.

"Oh, yes. I guess so," he said softly.

"You okay, you sound kind of tired?"

He sighed. "I didn't think dancing could be this rigorous."

I grinned. "Get some rest."

He grinned back. "I will."

"So are you going?"

"To rest?" he asked.

I rolled my eyes. "No, dummy. To the cast party?"

"Yes, I am. And I am not a dummy," he scolded me.

I laughed. "Just kidding."

He playfully ruffled my hair. "It's not nice to joke, Isabella."

Oh my word, that simple gesture made me shiver inside. I don't like my full name much, but when Edward says it, that's a different story.

"Sorry." I replied.

He gave me a smile. "Why did you want to know if I'll be going tomorrow?"

"No reason. I was just curious?" It came out as a question.

He threw his head back and laughed. "Since we're both going tomorrow, may I suggest we have rehearsal earlier in the morning? Just so we can have time to clean up and get ready for the cast party?" he asked.

"Good idea. Let's say we meet here at nine in the morning?"

He nodded. "Sounds good.

Edward POV

March 10th 2008

I parked my car in the lot, ready to go inside the restaurant to meet my fellow cast mates. The producers of the show invited everyone to dinner. Bella informed me that there would be a dance floor and bar, so that everyone could socialize.

In all honesty, I didn't really want to go. I was already doing the damn show, shouldn't that be enough? But then when Bella asked if I would be going, I knew I had to go. Screw getting to know everyone else; all I wanted was to see Bella.

The very idea of Bella in dinner/dance attire was enough of an incentive to go. I've told myself over and over, I shouldn't see Bella like that. She and I were working together and it wasn't like we were going to cross that bridge.

I sighed and looked at my watch it read 6:55pm. Dinner was supposed to be at 7. I couldn't hold it off any longer, so I took the key out of the ignition and got out off the car.

I walked through the front door and saw a bunch of people. I recognized a couple actresses and a young R & B singer. I saw a young woman with dark curly hair. She was attractive and I noticed that she was on the arm of a young man who had blonde hair and blue eyes. Hmm, they're together. Next to them was a tall girl with light brown hair. I kept roaming my eyes and they finally stopped when they saw a petite woman with pale skin and long dark brown locks. I searched her face, Bella.

Bella was standing there talking to the two young women and man. It was evident she knew them well, I suppose they were her fellow dancers. I felt like I should've been able to recognize some of these people, but I didn't. When Bella and I had shot our opening credits, I did get to meet some of the guys, but I hadn't met everyone.

I glanced at my watch again and it read seven o'clock. Anytime now. Bella must have seen me because I felt a light tap on my arm.

"Hi, Edward," she breathed.

I looked down at her and smiled. She looked lovely. Bella had on a pale blue dress that reached her knees and her hair was in soft waves. She wore little makeup and her pale skin glowed in the darkly lit front way.

"Hello, Bella," I greeted her.

"Nice of you to join us," she teased.

"Well I had to come, knowing that you would be here," I teased back.

She blushed and grabbed my hand. Bella lead me over to where she was standing earlier and introduced me to her friends.

The woman with the dark curly hair was introduced as Jessica Stanley. I was informed that she was married to the young looking man with the blonde hair and blue eyes; his name was Mike Newton. The tall woman was Angela Weber. All three of them were world renowned ballroom and Latin dancers.

After we exchanged pleasantries, we were all led to a big dining area. Bella placed herself next to me and I was secretly happy about that. Some older guy did all the introductions and the entire cast began to talk nicely amongst each other. I talked with a couple of the guys; Mike, some young actor, and the R & B singer.

Bella POV

Dinner had gone very well. It was nice to catch up with the people I did know, and it was even better meeting the new cast. Edward seemed to be doing fine conversing with Mike and a couple of the other guys. Every so often, I would look back at him to make sure he was enjoying himself. I don't know why, but I wanted him to have a good time.

Everyone moved into the club part of the restaurant, and a dj was blasting the usual club music. Mike grabbed Jessica's hand and spun her on the dance floor. I couldn't help but smile at them. Even though they're a little out there, it's evident they were made for each other.

I went over to the bar to get myself a drink and Angela went with me.

"Your partner is even hotter in person," she said.

"Angela!" I cried.

She threw her head back and laughed. "I'm just stating the obvious."

I shook my head. "You're so bad."

"He's single, right?"

I shrugged. "I don't know."

"Well he didn't come here with anyone. I think that means he's single," she said.

"He could be seeing someone. And maybe she couldn't make it," I replied.

Angela gave me a look. "Yeah, right."

"Why are we even talking about this? He's my dance partner, for god sakes!" I almost screamed.

"So? Our contracts are clear. It doesn't say we can't see our celebrity partners."

I rolled my eyes. "This is so unlike you, Angela."

"What? Can't I wish for you and the hottie to get together?"

"I'm going to sit down," I said. I was hoping to put an end to this conversation and thankfully, Angela took the hint.

Angela and I took seats in a booth not too far away from the dance floor. I looked around the room and spotted Edward talking to Mike and Jessica. He seemed to be ok talking to them.

After I finished my drink, I opted for water. I wasn't a drinker and I was sure if I had more than two, I would be dancing on the tables. That wasn't something anyone should witness, so non-alcoholic drinks it was.

I was taking a drink of my water when I felt someone slide into the booth next to me. I looked to my right and was met with a very handsome scene. Edward.

"Uhh... h hi," I said.

He chuckled. "Hello, Bella. Are you enjoying yourself?"

I nodded. "Mmmhhmm."

"Well, I was just wondering, would you like to dance?"

"With who?"

He smiled. "Me, of course."

"Ummmm," I was hesitant.

"The dancer doesn't want to dance?" he teased.

I blushed crimson. "No, I'd love to."

He got out off the booth and extended his hand to me. I placed my hand in his, and he led me to the dance floor. The dj changed the song to one with a slower tempo. Immediately, Edward brought his hand to rest on the small of my back while the other held my hand.

"Don't pick on my frame," he teased.

"I won't, I promised.

For a while, we just swayed together on the floor. My head was nestled into his chest and I could feel his breath by my ear. He started humming then. It was a tune I couldn't recognize, but the melody was soothing. He held me just a little harder and then he twirled me! He held my hand in his and spun me. We laughed as he pulled me back into his hold. Hmmm, dancing with Edward really is fun.

Alright, I hope you liked that. Have a great holiday season!

Till next time.

Tina